Name/Title
Uncategory 14 LandEntry/Object ID
2019.01.01Description
Niap (Nancy Saunder) is a multidisciplinary Inuk artist whose practice has jumped between the mediums of carving, textile, painting and collage. Born in the village of Kuujjuaq in the Nunavik region of Quebec but living in Montreal, her artwork explores her struggle with identity living in the city with her Inuk identity and intentionally questions “what is Inuit art?”.
She finds interest in looking at history and subjects of tension, taking on the role of moderator as she navigates viewers through dialogue and challenges their assumptions. Her art frequently disrupts both modern and Inuit aesthetics through playful experimentation, re-establishing the links between the past and the present to create something that reflects the modernity of Indigenous identity.
In Uncategory 14 Land (2019), Niap repurposes the black-and-white images of northern landscapes by documentary photographer Robert Fréchette. The artist paints over the somber and empty images with lines and markings reminiscent of Inuk tattoos that add colour, movement, and life to the scenery. In doing so, she asserts that there is more to static landscapes than beauty. Comparing her works to historic ethnographic and romantic photography, Niap overthrows the stereotypical imagery that erases the Inuit from the land and creates the assumption that Inuit culture exists in the past. Her work illustrates the current reclamation of traditional territories that were seen as "untouched" by colonial powers and the ongoing existence of a contemporary Inuit.
Niap is an advocate for her community and culture. As a teenager she walked from Duncan, BC, to Ottawa, ON, to raise awareness for Indigenous youth suicide prevention. Also a throat singer, she has performed at several public events including a 2014 ceremony in Quebec that recognized throat singing as a form of intangible heritage under the Cultural Heritage Act. Her art is present in many collections across Canada.Artwork Details
Medium
acrylic on archival pigment printDimensions
Height
60.95 cmWidth
91.45 cm